Lujiazui Exhibition Center | OMA

Lujiazui Exhibition Center
OMA has won a competition to design the Lujiazui Exhibition Center, a 1,500 square meter space in Pudong, Shanghai, China on the site of the former “Shanghai Shipyard.” The design aims to create a concentrated culture and event space within the surrounding financial district on one of the most photographed waterfronts in the world – the edge of the Huangpu River.

Courtesy of OMA

Located on the ramp of a disused ship cradle, the Exhibition Center is conceived as a “spatial armature,” rising above a new plaza to define a range of uses in the surrounding space such as film screenings, fashion shows and concerts, while the area underneath the building can be used for more intimate gatherings. Internally, exhibition spaces are contained within the raised armature and also in a space beneath the ship cradle ramp.

Courtesy of OMA

The materiality of the building is designed to recall the site’s industrial heritage. The structure will be wrapped in a metallic mesh which partially exposes the building’s structure, a move that is intended to evoke images of the unfinished ship hulls which used to occupy the area. Completion of the new Lujiazui Exhibition Center is planned for the end of 2015.

About The Author

Delia Chang is a pending architect who spends a lot of time teleporting to different parts of Earth’s surface. She has written and edited numerous publications for Arch2O and enjoys exploring the relationship between architecture, hugs and food.